Myths and Truths about the Cell Church Vision

Posted by Joel on February 4, 2012

Dear friends of Cells-church Consultants International,

I want to thank my good friend and co-worker, Bill Joukhadar, for giving me the opportunity to be regular blogger on his very important site. I will be blogging in the next few months on some of the myths and truths of the cell movement.

Most of the modern day cell church movement is dynamic, positive, and applicable. As is true in most endeavors, errors and false assumptions also crop up to destroy an otherwise healthy movement. I noticed that sometimes these false concepts caused the church to go astray completely. At other times, they led the pastor and church down a dead-end road of fruitless ministry. Often these errors or myths started with good intentions but grew into legalistic rules. Regardless of how the myths were generated, they had a chilling effect on the church’s ministry. As a cell coach, I found myself spending more and more time trying to untangle the myths and half-truths and point the way to balanced, principled-oriented cell-church ministry.

I will be blogging in the next few months on some of the myths and truths of the cell movement. I hope you read each installment!

Stick to HIS plan

Posted by Bill on

Valuable lessons don’t come easy for me. On Thursday night, September 21, 2006, I remember staging our first small groups pastors celebration under the tented area at Maadi Community Church. More than one hundred and forty people who had undergone small groups’ pastors training since August, 2000, joined together to celebrate the amazing things the Lord had done through the small groups of the church. During this time I had opportunity to share several defining moments of our thrilling six and a half years of small groups’ development journey.

I explained that I arrived at MCC from Australia in May, 2000, full of confidence and enthusiasm, with a plan under my arm … ready to launch-out to establish networks of small groups that would help grow MCC through multiplying disciples and multiplying groups. I shared that it wasn’t long before I found myself flat on my face before the Lord, feeling shattered and defeated – crying out in desperation to Him … “Why hasn’t my plan worked? Why is frustration and failure the fruit of my labour?”

Through waiting on the Lord I heard Him whisper back to me, “For I know the plans I have for you …” (Jeremiah 29:11a). How naive and arrogant of me to presume that I knew enough of my new assignment to have raced ahead of God with “my” plan, without having consulted with Him. Through that sobering blunder I gained a better understanding and appreciation of Psalm 127:1, where the psalmist says, “Unless the Lord builds a house, the work of the builders is useless”.

With a renewed perspective, the Lord began to reveal to me in small parts, His plan for small groups development at MCC. The plan that He unveiled was radically new to my experience. Over a number of months my dear wife, Beryl, patiently persevered with me to sketch-out God’s plan, with biblical specifications and illustration, on our home computer. The finished plan looked great, and I felt peace that this was going to work!

Following the plan the Lord revealed to us – a plan that is founded upon three great passages of Scripture (Matthew 22:36-40; Matthew 28:18-20; and Ephesians 4:12, 16), many in our church diligently laboured together to establish networks of small groups in our church that would … “Equip God’s people to do His work, and build up the church … so that the whole body is healthy and growing and full of love”. This great plan emphasises a balance of personal growth in four spiritual dimensions: Upward (Worship), Inward (Fellowship), Outward (Evangelism), and Forward (Discipleship).

At that time, more than 800 people had undergone small groups development training at MCC in the 6 ½ years. Although each trainee had the plan carefully presented to them, sadly not all kept to the plan. Those who kept to the plan tasted sweet-success and those who strayed away from it did not. God’s plan worked exceptionally well and still does – at any time, and in any place! Through sticking to His plan, Fredrick and Bosco planted one small group in a poor community in Cairo that grew and multiplied many times over and resulted in 91 small groups (with 947 members) in just two years!

Friends, I am so glad my plan did not work. My plan did not provide for multiplying churches and multiplying movements. It didn’t enter into my mind that this could ever happen. God, however, planned for this to happen – 297 groups, 2768 members, 5 daughter churches, and more than 1,000 new believers! All this, and much more, because of our resolve to stick to His plan!

Joel Comiskey – our guest blogger in 2012

Posted by Bill on February 2, 2012

Joel Comiskey

I’m delighted to announce that Joel Comiskey – recognised as one of the greatest exponents of Small-Groups / Cell-Groups has accepted our invitation to be a guest blogger on the CCI website in the coming year.

Joel is an internationally celebrated cell group and cell church consultant. He has written best-selling books on the worldwide cell group movement. Joel’s easy to understand writing style has encouraged and inspired the equipping of the saints, for the building the church, for service to the Lord in expanding His Kingdom without limit.

I first experienced Joel through reading several published articles by him on the web, in Cairo (in 2002). This inspired me to contact Joel by email, expressing a desire to meet with him in person. Not long after this I travelled from Cairo to Merino Valley, California, where I met Joel and his family. Ever since that time, we have been worldwide cell/small groups development partners.

I know you will be encouraged, edified, and inspired as you feast at Joel’s banquet of blog articles. If you haven’t subscribed to recieve our blog posts right in your inbox, you can do it NOW, right here! Please also take the opportunity to visit Joel’s own blog and explore the many resources available through his website.

www.joelcomiskeygroup.com
www.comiskey.org

Bill

Pray for All Nations Community Church in Sudan

Posted by Bill on January 28, 2012

Just over a week ago (or maybe two weeks by the time this is posted), CCI had the privilege of forwarding a sizeable cash gift to All Nations Community Church in Sudan for the purpose of strengthening their efforts in outreaching their community. Shortly after I received the following email from Papiti, the pastor of ANCC …

Hi Pastor Bill,

Thank you and the CCI Team for this Divine Provision. I call it a Divine provision, because since last month we have been praying for our second evangelistic outreach to take place and we have been praying for money that can cover the cost. With the gift you sent we are going to start the outreach on 26^th Jan, up to 29^th.. This four days outreach will make a great change in the life of many people. So please join us in prayer for this day and for the part of cost that is not covered. God bless you more.

Papiti.

Friends, I am so amazed at the perfect timing of this gift. I had no idea that ANCC had planned a 4-days outreach and needed financial support. I give credit to the Holy Spirit for inspiring a number of CCI partners to collaborate together for His will and purposes with ANCC. I’ve attached several photos to help you in your prayers for Papiti and ANCC. Let’s pray for a great movement of the Holy Spirit during the 4 days of their outreach event.

Pastor Papiti and family

“Lord, what an amazing work You have done in ANCC. And how glad we are to know You will continue this work until it has been completed. We want to support Your efforts through Papiti and ANCC. May Your love, grace and mercy flow freely through their community in South Sudan during the time of their outreach, commencing on the 26^th of this month. Draw many hungry and thirsty souls to Your throne of grace, through Your Son, Jesus, by the power of Your Holy Spirit. Strengthen Your church, Lord. Receive the glory they desire for You. Amen.”

Believing in the ‘Power of One’

Posted by Bill on January 21, 2012

“Do not despise these small beginnings, for the Lord rejoices to see the work begin …” (Zechariah 4:10a)

In 2004, a small door of opportunity opened up to my former teammates, Fredrick and Bosco, to minister to two Sudanese refugee communities, situated in the poorer regions of Cairo (at Arba-We-Nus and Hay El Ashre). In the home of a believer at Arba-We-Nus, Fredrick and Bosco shared our vision for a small groups based church. Our vision was enthusiastically embraced by the host and his family … and “one” small group was formed on that day.

After meeting together for just one month the members of this “one” small cell group conducted an ambitious Good News outreach program, contacting fifty families in each of the two Sudanese communities. As a result, seventy families from each community responded to an invitation to gather at the venue of this “one” small group to hear God’s Good News of salvation and hope for their lives. Upon their arrival, each family was presented with a food gift pack, containing; rice, tea, sugar, soap and oil (the cost of the food packs was met by the members of this “one” small group). Every visitor was touched by the love, compassion, and open-heart generosity of the members of this “one” small group.

Two years later, together with Fredrick and sixteen other small group pastors from Maadi Community Church, I travelled to Arba-We-Nus where I was given the privilege of dedicating to the Lord our third daughter church (The Sudanese Interdenominational Church). This new church represented just one half of what resulted from the small beginnings of “one” small group. Two months later, I returned to Arba-We-Nus to dedicate the birth of one more daughter church (the second half of this amazing outcome).

In just two years, through the exercise of faith in God, and through the dedication, commitment and sacrifice of the members of “one” small group, 91 small groups resulted (with 947 members)! The needs of many desperate people were met, and hundreds of souls were saved and brought into God’s Kingdom! Wow! Wow! Wow! The power of “One” defied our imaginations. Immediately after returning to Maadi I forwarded this message to the pastoral staff of MCC:

I am reporting to you on the dedication service of the Sudanese Interdenominational Church that took place at 5 pm today. This event will go down in my history book as one the most memorable experiences of my life. 250+ men, women and children gathered together in a simple worship facility, and with sincere hearts, praised the Lord, and thank Him for His grace and mercy in their lives. Fredrick preached his heart out and 12 more souls came to Christ! Immediately, these young spiritual “babes” were followed-up. When I called for those who were serious about committing their lives to the work of nurturing and maturing their infant church, everyone present sprang to their feet and joined with me in a prayer of commitment to nurture and grow their church. The Lord was glorified through this amazing event!

None of this would have happened without Fredrick and Bosco believing in the power of “One” – the power of God.

The Bible says in Job 8:7, “And though you started with little, you will end with much”. Friends, do you believe in the power of “One”?